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Sunday, December 25, 2016

After
reading Blood & Beauty: The Borgias, I always wanted to read another
novel by Sarah Dunant. At some Goodreads friends’ nudge, I decided to pick this
one up.

Throughout
the first three-quarters of the book I was more emotionally twined with the
character of the dwarf Bucino than I would care to admit. The fact that he is
also the first-person narrator is supposed to give immediacy and sense of
reality to the scenes and things happening to him, but I must confess that I consciously
and stubbornly clung to my skepticism. However, by the time I reached the
denouement, I was obviously already too invested in him to be able to detach
myself from his pain and anguish, or hold back my tears. That Dunant is a
brilliant writer needs no further proof.

The
plot would seem simple enough but nonetheless enthralling: a famed courtesan
Fiammetta and her dwarf Bucino must escape the carnage of Rome’s invasion by
foreign powers and are forced to find their footing again in prospering Venice,
where they meet their friends and foes. With their loss of a precious jewel, we
are led down a path of intrigue behind a veil of fog when Fiammetta’s healer
and friend – a blind hunchback called La Draga – starts to snatch our
attention. From that point on, I was loath to put the book down. The ending
didn’t surprise as much as it saddened me.

Apart
from being a skillful storyteller, the author is also adept at painting a vivid
picture of 16th century urban Venice. In true historical fiction
form, real historical characters abound in the novel to enhance the sense of
place and time: painter Tiziano Vecellio (or Titian), engraver Marcantonio
Raimondi, writer Pietro Aretino, painter Giulio Romano, and healer Elena
Crusichi (fictionalized as La Draga).

I’m
giving this novel 3.7 stars. [Warning: the language may be a bit raunchy for
some readers’ taste.]

Wednesday, December 21, 2016

I read the Chinese version with English translation. I was most
impressed with this observation: that winning every war is not the best
scenario; the most ideal scenario is where one manages to repel an enemy
without fighting. The other theory I found convincing is that a shrewd
fighter would choose his men wisely and would know how to ride the
prevailing situation. Most of the contents would seem to be practical
common sense.

The keynote of the first chapter ~ all warfare is
based on deception ~ seems to tally with the last chapter, which is
about the use of spies.

Friday, December 16, 2016

I read the English version of this famous classical Chinese play set in
the late Ming/early Qing dynasty. The translators did a superb job,
considering the difficult classical Chinese language and the numerous
historical allusions, which are not easy to grasp even for the average
Chinese person.

The story is about a late Ming courtesan's
struggles to stay loyal to her true love despite villainous attempts by
self serving power mongers to tear the lovers apart. It reflects on the
stark contrast between the courtesan's strong-willed patriotism and the
traitorous deeds of an avaricious and corrupt clique at the Southern
Ming court, whose total lack of morals and internecine feud ultimately
led to the demise of the Southern Ming Pretender's reign.

I loved
the historical background of the play, as well as the poetic renderings
of much of the dialogues, which add to the poignancy of the story. I
kept referring to the original Chinese edition to check out the
beautiful poetry.

Friday, December 9, 2016

I had read this in Chinese in my childhood, along with other Jin Yong
martial arts novels. The image of the virtuous hero Chen Jialuo stuck in
my mind.

Update (Sept. 14, 2016) - I'm reading the English version.

Update
(October 8, 2016) - After flipping through a few pages of the English
version, I became frustrated as I couldn't recognize the names of the
characters due to the "pinyin" romanization (my recollection is in
Cantonese). Otherwise, the translation is well done. I'm going to
re-read the Chinese version.

Update (December 6, 2016) ~ I've
finished rereading the Chinese version of the novel. Almost half a
century after my first read, I still found this novel magical! The author
skillfully weaves together three main storylines: that of the resistance
movement against the Qing rulers by a powerful clique called the Red
Flower Society; that of the enigmatic birth secret of Qianlong Emperor
who, as it turns out, is related to the protagonist Chen Jialuo, the
head of the Red Flower Society; and that of the Xinjiang Uighur tribe's
loss and recovery of their sacred scriptures. A convoluted love
quadrangle forms between the protagonist, Qianlong and two Uighur
sisters. Apart from these key storylines, there are several sub stories
about some of the Red Flower Society's members, who are all veteran
martial arts experts. The central theme is about honor and integrity of the individual, and loyalty and comradeship of the brotherhood.

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About Me

Always fascinated with iconic but unsung females in Chinese history and legends, I cherish a dream of bringing them to the page. Chinese history and poetry, Jin Yong novels, English, French and Russian classics have colored my life and imagination.